December 2024 SEO News Roundup
December caught a lot of SEOs off guard. Just when things seemed to settle, Google dropped a second core update, followed by a spam update days later. At the same time, AI-powered search changes started hitting site traffic harder, and new tools like real-time data in Search Console and Bing’s Copilot began rolling out. It was a busy end to the year, full of surprises and shifts that could shape how we approach SEO in 2025.
Surprise December 2024 Core Update Drops
In an unexpected move, Google launched a second core update just weeks after the previous one, starting December 12 and finishing December 181. Even SEOs were caught off guard (“back-to-back” core updates are rare). Google explained that it continuously improves different “core systems,” so having a core update so soon was by design. Data showed the December core update was more volatile than the November update, many sites saw significant ranking swings over the 6-day rollout.
Why it matters: This one-two punch proved Google won’t always wait months between core updates. SEOs had to quickly assess impact again. Industries that were spared in November sometimes got hit in December (and vice versa). The volatility reminded everyone to keep site quality high at all times, since Google can roll out major changes even during the holiday season.
December Spam Update Follows on Core’s Heels
The day after the core update finished, Google launched the December 2024 Spam Update on December 192. It rolled out over a week, concluding by December 26. This was a broad spam algorithm update, global and across all languages. Google aimed to further weed out sites violating its spam policies (like cloaking, link spam, scraped content farms, etc.). Many in the SEO community noted this update “hit some sites hard,” especially those with aggressive SEO tactics3.
Why it matters: Google essentially gave low-quality sites a one-two knockout: first the core update, then a spam-focused update. Websites employing black-hat or spammy tactics saw sharp declines in indexing and rankings during this period. For legitimate sites, the spam update could actually be positive, if competitors using spam techniques fell, others may have risen. The timing right at year’s end was tough, but it reinforced Google’s message: clean up spammy practices or suffer algorithmic consequences.
Generative AI Slams Organic Traffic
By December, data was emerging on how generative AI in search has impacted websites. A TechCrunch analysis highlighted that “many sites saw their organic traffic decline in 2024, largely due to AI-generated search results”. Essentially, when Google (and Bing) show direct AI answers, users click fewer results, burying traffic that sites used to get4.
Why it matters: It quantifies what many SEOs feared, the rise of AI answers in search correlates with traffic drops, since users find info without clicking through. By year’s end, adapting SEO strategy became vital: focusing on content that complements AI answers (or is cited by them), optimizing for questions that drive clicks, and diversifying traffic sources. The takeaway is that AI-powered SERPs are changing user behavior, and the websites are feeling it.
ChatGPT Becomes a Full-Fledged Web Search Engine
OpenAI rolled out ChatGPT with built-in web browsing (ChatGPT Search) to all users by mid-December. No more plugins needed, the AI chatbot can directly fetch and summarize live internet content. It even embeds sources (with links and images) in answers. This effectively turns ChatGPT into an alternative search engine interface.
Why it matters: This expansion massively increased the public’s access to AI-driven search. For SEO, it means a growing segment of users might get answers via ChatGPT instead of Google, especially for informational queries. Sites may start seeing traffic from ChatGPT (via source links), or they may see users not clicking through at all because ChatGPT gave the info. Marketers need to monitor referral traffic from ChatGPT and ensure content is optimized to be the kind of authoritative source AI will cite. It’s a new frontier: AI SEO, where winning might mean being the chosen reference in a ChatGPT answer.
Google Adds Real-Time 24-Hour View to Search Console
Google rolled out a new “24 hours” data view in Search Console, giving site owners hourly breakdowns for Search, Discover, and News traffic. The update cuts data delays nearly in half, helping users monitor fresh content or campaigns with much greater speed. This is the first time Search Console has offered near real-time visibility into site performance, giving teams quicker feedback loops.
Why it matters: Being able to track traffic patterns by the hour lets SEOs catch problems early, tweak headlines or metadata on short notice, and show immediate wins during product launches or breaking news cycles.
Microsoft Launches Copilot Beta Inside Bing Webmaster Tools
Microsoft quietly opened access to a new AI assistant called Copilot for 10,000 Bing Webmaster Tools users. The feature lets site owners ask natural-language questions about their site data and get AI-powered suggestions, effectively turning Bing’s backend into a conversational analytics tool. It’s Microsoft’s latest move to fold AI into everyday SEO workflows5.
Why it matters: For SEOs juggling multiple properties, Copilot could save time and surface issues that might go unnoticed in standard reports. It’s also a glimpse at how AI might be used to simplify technical SEO tasks in the near future.
To Fight AI Search Spam, Prioritize Real Human Voices
A WIRED feature published in late December spotlighted how AI-generated content is flooding search results, pushing search engines to prioritize sources with clear signs of human authorship. The article pointed to forums, personal blogs, and ad-free communities as examples of spaces that stand out for their credibility and real-world engagement, even as large publishers automate more of their output6.
Why it matters: If search engines lean into authenticity signals, publishers and SEOs will need to think beyond keywords and scaling. Building trust through tone, community, and originality might become just as important as technical optimizations.
That wraps up December. The updates came fast, and the impact was real, from rankings to traffic to the tools we rely on. As AI and algorithm changes keep accelerating, staying sharp and adapting quickly will be key going into 2025.
